Monday, March 25, 2013

Insurers rate their products based on risk perception ~
the physical features of a risk are most relevant….. there are pockets of
potential hazards where fire-fighting or reaching out to the fire is too
difficult, it is not these are far away ~ you can find them in your own
locality, in your neighbourhood… but do we really seem to care ? An Insurance Policy would at best provide
financial reimbursement, but there are more that arise out of a loss ~ the loss
of business, the injury / death of humans and more……..

A visitor to Delhi
would no doubt visit this place and be overawed but he locality. The area is instantly recognizable on any map
of Delhi, being
the big circle in the middle with radial roads spreading out in all directions,
like spokes on a wheel. Eight separate roads lead out from its inner circle,
named Parliament Street
and Radial Roads 1 through 7. Twelve different roads lead out from the outer
ring; the most well-known of these is Janpath. Its central park has long been a
venue for cultural events. As is with many modern day landmarks, prior to it's construction the area was a ridge,
covered with kikar trees inhabited by jackals and wild pigs.

No prizes for guessing ~ it is the Connaught Place; the regal station of Rajiv Chowk where you have
the option to interchange for the Yellow and Blue lines of Metro rail. Robert Tor Russell, chief architect to the
Public Works Department(PWD), Government of India is credited with its design. It was named after The Prince Arthur, 1st
Duke of Connaught (1850–1942), third son of Queen Victoria.
Connaught Place
is one of the largest financial, commercial and business centers in Delhi.

A fire blazed in shop in the heart of Delhi and Daily Mail reports that the blaze
exposes fire risks ~ not exactly of its physical traits but from the
surroundings - from squatters and
illegal parking. The report states that firemen raced against time on Sunday
afternoon as illegally parked cars and a row of generator sets prevented them
from taking a direct route to a chemist's shop that was in flames in Connaught Place.
The obstructions forced them to take a longer way, wasting vital time and
causing more damage to the shop. By good luck, the fire did not spread to other shops.
However, things could very easily have got out of hand.

A Mail Today survey has revealed how automobile workshops,
welders, scrap dealers, tens of small establishments and illegally parked
vehicles have eaten into the posh market place, with disastrous consequences
like those on Sunday. Usually, civic
officials have turned a blind eye to this. Details of the encroachments were
first brought to the notice of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) by the
Supreme Court-appointed Bhure Lal committee a few months ago. The panel had
directed the municipal body to prepare a report on all the illegal
encroachments in Connaught Place
along with an action plan to remove them.

"Encroachment on public land is unacceptable and
whenever we get reports about them, we'll inspect the area and if necessary take
action," said an NDMC spokesperson. Officials say that 27 establishments
were identified in Connaught Place's
A and G blocks. Encroachments in these areas were mostly found to be extended
sheds, air-conditioning units and enclosures that were used as store
rooms. Following the inspection, notices
were given to the establishments in October last year, of which only 11 were
complied with. Even though NDMC officials have carried out minor demolition
work in the area, Connaught Place
has still not been rid of the encroachments and clogged pathways. Senior NDMC
officials claim that removing encroachments in Connaught Place is not easy. Some shop
owners, who have been sent notices, claim their disputed property to be older
than 50 years, for which NDMC has no building records.

Encroachment between the blocks is not the only type of
illegal occupation of land in Connaught
Place. Hundreds of squatters are seen selling
clothes, vegetables and handicrafts on the corridors of CP and in the lane
outside Palika Bazaar underground parking. There is evidently much to be saved from
illegally occupying space in one of the most expensive commercial spaces in the
world - the fourth highest, according to one survey. The occupancy cost in Connaught Place is Rs 8,804 per square
foot, compared to Rs 8,478 per square foot in Tokyo's central business district, according
to an annual survey released recently by global real estate service firm
Cushman & Wakefield. The equivalent cost in New York City's Midtown, is Rs 7,002.

This time the fire was not devastating and was
brought under control – but there are potent risks waiting to explode… the onus
is on the authorities to take timely action and on us to ensure that there is
cooperation on all fronts.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

The fire and hazard part is almost entirely reproduced
from the Daily Mail UK. Fire damage photos also courtesy www.dailymail.co.uk

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